At a claimed 143kg it is relatively light and that
single cylinder punch is definitely a boon for
city riding, though your transitional throttle/
clutch control when changing gear has to
be well tuned and timed to avoid any single-
cylinder’s naturally snatchy nature.
I found I felt I was sitting ‘out front’ on the
CB3 and had to take a good look down to be
sure the nice led indicators’ signal light wasn’
still flashing, should I have miss-hit the cancel
switch – the instruments aren’t in easy line of
sight. That said, the instruments themselves are
well thought out with gold numerals providing
the information on a black background. They
are good and readable in all but the brightest of
sun glare conditions, where every bike struggles.
The claimed 30hp is enough for around
The dual channel Inertia
Measurement Unit (IMU)
ABS brakes on the Honda
offer potentially life
saving technology
town and first time riders, but it’s the most
powerful control on these bikes that get my
attention – the brakes. The Dual Channel
Inertia Measurement Unit (IMU) ABS brakes
on the Honda offer the potentially life saving
technology. You might think that’s a well-
bandied catch cry, but this basically offers to do
for ABS in the commuter market what modern
traction control/braking has done for powerful
superbikes. This controls the traction during
braking at all lean angles, helping to save your
arse from losing the front end while braking
leant over – something that normally happens
in an emergency. Amazing stuff. This is where I’ll
be pushing my teenager when he wants a bike.
TODD SUTHERLAND